Police charge Clearwater man in September shooting

CLEARWATER — Police have charged a Clearwater man in connection with a shooting that took place five months ago.

Aaron Hoyte, 31, has been charged with attempted felony murder, armed robbery and felonious possession of a firearm, according to the Clearwater Police Department.

Hoyte was identified in connection with a Sept. 30 shooting on the 600 block of Grant Street, off Myrtle Avenue north of downtown Clearwater. The victim, 41-year-old Raul Torres, was treated and has since been released from the hospital, police said.

Authorities said at the time that two friends took Torres to meet with someone at the dead end of Grant Street. They took him to the hospital with life-threatening injuries after the shooting.

Hoyte is currently incarcerated in the Pinellas County Jail on an unrelated cocaine-possession charge. Clearwater public safety spokeswoman Elizabeth Watts said detectives identified Hoyte as a suspect based on DNA evidence at the crime scene.

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